Happy Birthday and Birthday Cakes
The song " Happy birthday to you" is sung all over the world just before the birthday boy or girl blows out the candles on the cake. It is so simple in melody1 and lyric that children as young as three can sing it without hesitation. The song， with its original title " Good Morning to You" ， was written in 1893 by the two sisters， Mildred and Patty Smith Hill. They were the daughters of a progressive2 Kentucky couple， who believed in female education at a time――the mid-nineteenth century―― when it was still a novel idea and who trained their two daughters to be schoolteachers. They were long involved in elementary3 education， and Patty， in particular. She achieved considerable prominence4 as a pioneer in kindergarten5 education， and for several decades a major spokesperson for preschool education. She taught at Columbia University's Teachers College from 1905 to 1935，and at her retirement became one of the first women to be named a professor emeritus6 by Columbia.
A birthday cake with burning candles is also indispensable7 at one's birthday party. It may derive， distantly， from8 the ancient Greek practice of offering to Artemis， goddess of the hunt and of the moon， a round honey cake into which a candle was stuck. After German bakers invented the modern birthday cake in the Middle Ages， a similar custom was adopted for the invocation9 of good spirits at birthdays. The cake， ready by morning， would be surrounded by burning candles， in a kind of protective fire circle， and they would be kept lit all day， until dessert time at the evening meal.
The candle-blowing-out custom may be associated with candles' dual10 meaning at birthdays. Some people believe that each birthday is another step toward the end， and what we celebrate at birthday gatherings is not only our growth， but our transience11.Thus，candles at birthdays are symbols of duality，life and death，hopes and fears， increase and loss， and so on.
中文翻译
"生日快乐"与生日蛋糕
全世界过生日的男孩和女孩在吹灭生日蛋糕上的蜡烛之前都有人唱"祝你生日快乐"这首歌。它的词和曲都很简单上口，连三岁的小孩都能毫不犹豫地唱出来。这首歌原来叫"早安"，是米尔德里德和帕蒂・史密斯・希尔两姐妹在1893年创作的。她们的父母是一对非常开明的肯塔基州夫妇。他们坚信女子教育――在19世纪中期这还是个很新奇的观点――并把两个女儿培养成教师。姐妹俩，尤其是帕蒂，长期从事基础教育。作为幼儿教育的先驱，帕蒂取得了显著成就，并且几十年来一直是学前教育领域的主要发言人。从1905年到1935年，她在哥伦比亚大学师范学院任教，退休时成为哥伦比亚大学最早的荣誉退休女教授之一。
生日聚会上还一定要有插着点燃着的蜡烛的生日蛋糕。这可能是源于古希腊用插着一支蜡烛的一个圆形蜂蜜蛋糕来拜祭月亮和狩猎之神阿尔特宓斯的习俗。德国的面包师在中世纪发明了现代的生日蛋糕以后，人们就采用了类似的一种习俗，在生日祈求福神。早上做好的蛋糕点上一圈蜡烛，像是一个保护性的火环。蜡烛整天都点着，一直点到晚饭吃甜点的时候。
吹蜡烛的习惯也许跟生日蜡烛的双重意义有关。有人相信每一个生日都表示离死亡又近了一步。我们在生日聚会上庆祝的不仅是我们的成长，还有生命的短暂。因此，生日蜡烛象征着双重含义：生命与死亡，希望与恐惧，得到与失去等等。
注释：
1.melody n.（音）旋律，曲调
2.progressive adj.进步的
3.elementary adj.基础的
4.prominence n.杰出，显著
5.kindergarten adj.幼儿园的
6.emeritus adj.荣誉退职的
7.indispensable adj.必需的
8.derive vi.（与from搭配）起源
9.invocation n.祈祷
10.dual adj.双重的
11.transience n.短暂
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